Chapter 19: Fierce Battle

After Li Qing sensed the figure behind him, he maintained an expressionless face and continued to walk briskly toward the interior.

"Fellow Daoist, I wonder if there are any other threats inside besides that early-stage First-Tier Azure Water Ghost Snake?" Li Qing suddenly asked as they walked along the path.

"None."

"Rest assured, fellow Daoist. The only threat inside is that early-stage First-Tier Azure Water Ghost Snake. The rest of the ordinary snake swarms pose no threat to us."

As Black Shark spoke, the two had already arrived on the island. However, the surrounding trees obscured their figures.

Seeing that they had arrived, the ferocity on Black Shark's face surfaced. Combined with Black Wind following behind, they had completely surrounded Li Qing. Seeing his scheme succeed, Black Shark felt even more at ease.

"But..."

Hearing Li Qing attempt to ask more, Black Shark frowned inwardly. Just as he was about to reveal his hand, he suddenly saw a streak of dark, ghostly light rushing toward him.

Li Qing poured his full spiritual power into the Cold Water Sword, shooting it directly toward Black Shark.

The moment he saw the attack from the Cold Water Sword, Black Shark froze, and then his expression changed drastically. He had never expected that this person, whom he viewed as mere prey, would suddenly launch an attack against him.

Terrified, Black Shark reacted instantly.

"You seek death!" Black Shark roared.

Looking at the incoming magical tool, it appeared unremarkable—clearly just an ordinary low-grade tool. A look of disdain flashed in Black Shark's eyes as he slapped his storage bag.

A cyan Mysterious Shield instantly flew out from the bag. Once the shield was deployed, Black Shark felt a sense of relief. This was a mid-grade defensive tool he had specifically purchased for self-preservation; selling the Deep Sea Thick Earth previously had been for this very purpose. The assault of an ordinary low-grade tool posed little threat to the Cyan Mysterious Shield.

*Whoosh!*

The pitch-black Cold Water Sword arrived before the Cyan Mysterious Shield in an instant.

"I originally wanted to let you live a little longer, but I didn't expect you to seek death so actively," Black Shark said with a distorted, ferocious expression.

Black Shark struck the Cyan Mysterious Shield with a surge of spiritual power. The shield instantly expanded in size, firmly shielding him behind it. He then waved his hand again, and an ordinary sword-shaped low-grade tool flew out from his storage bag.

Seeing Black Shark's counterattack, a cold sneer appeared on Li Qing's face. He pinched a hand seal, and a massive surge of blue, frigid energy immediately erupted from the Cold Water Sword.

*Clang!*

The body of the Cold Water Sword collided with the Cyan Mysterious Shield, producing countless sparks as the surging blue, frigid energy instantly enveloped the shield.

"Not good!" Black Shark's face filled with shock.

That seemingly ordinary low-grade tool of the opponent began to shimmer with spiritual light; it was clearly no common item.

*Crack! Crack! Crack!*

The massive frigid energy expanded rapidly. In an instant, blue ice flowers began to form on the surface of the Cyan Mysterious Shield. Under the erosion of the frigid energy, Black Shark felt the circulation of the spiritual power in his body become obstructed. However, seeing that the Cyan Mysterious Shield was still firmly blocking the Cold Water Sword, he finally breathed a sigh of relief.

In these brief moments, his mental state shifted rapidly: from initial arrogance, to fear upon seeing the power of the Cold Water Sword, and finally to greed. He had not expected this prey's wealth to be even greater than he had imagined. An ordinary fourth-layer Qi Refinement cultivator actually possessed a high-quality mid-grade magical tool.

Black Shark couldn't help but feel secretly fortunate. Had he acted alone, the consequences might have been unthinkable. He hadn't expected that this seemingly naive cultivator had discovered his scheme long ago.

*Clang! Clang!!*

Under Li Qing's control, the Cold Water Sword slashed repeatedly at the Cyan Mysterious Shield. After several rounds, several faint cracks actually appeared on the mid-grade defensive tool.

Seeing his precious treasure being damaged, Black Shark felt an intense pang of heartache. Thinking that Black Wind was on his way, Black Shark began to defend with everything he had. He retracted the low-grade tool he had previously drawn and poured all his spiritual power into the Cyan Mysterious Shield.

Black Shark glared at Li Qing with a ferocious expression. As long as he held out until Black Wind arrived, the two of them working together would surely kill the opponent.

On the other side, Li Qing frowned inwardly. He hadn't expected the man before him to possess such an impressive defensive tool. The Cyan Mysterious Shield had actually blocked the first wave of the Cold Water Sword's assault. Of course, this wasn't due to the sword itself, but rather because Li Qing's own cultivation was insufficient; if he had the strength of a late-stage Qi Refinement cultivator, the shield's defense would likely have been broken in just a few strikes.

"Still hoping for reinforcements?"

A flash of killing intent erupted in Li Qing's eyes. He immediately stopped concealing his true strength. He had to kill Black Shark quickly before the other person arrived.

*Crackle! Pop!*

A burst of violent purple lightning appeared.

Black Shark, who was focusing all his strength on defending against the Cold Water Sword, suddenly looked forward in terror. Around the cultivator he had deemed prey, purple arcs of electricity were erupting continuously like writhing snakes. A violent, tyrannical lightning force spread out in all directions.

*Whoosh!*

In the next moment, a purple figure rushed toward Black Shark at high speed.

"Not good!"

Black Shark realized at that moment that the young man he had viewed as prey had been hiding his strength. The man was not only a Qi Refinement cultivator but also a powerful hidden Body Cultivator. Black Shark recognized the powerful aura emanating from Li Qing at a glance—it was clearly at a level equivalent to late-stage Qi Refinement.

A look of horror appeared on Black Shark's face. Even on Giant Wood Island, cultivators who practiced both Body and Dharma cultivation were rare. Such cultivators usually came from powerful backgrounds, which allowed them to disregard the massive resources required for such a path.

Even an ant has the instinct to survive, let alone Black Shark. Seeing that he was in a desperate situation, Black Shark pulled a blood-red pill from his pocket and swallowed it without the slightest hesitation.

"Ah! Argh!"

After the pill entered his stomach, Black Shark let out miserable, agonized screams, his face contorted in pain. A massive surge of spiritual power erupted from his body once more. Unlike before, this surge of cyan spiritual power was distinctly tinged with an eerie crimson hue.

"The Blood Bursting Pill!"

Seeing Black Shark swallow the pill and seeing his explosive power become even greater than before, Li Qing immediately identified it. The Blood Bursting Pill was a high-grade First-Tier spiritual pill, costing over a hundred low-grade spirit stones per pill. This pill was not used for cultivation, but for combat. It could stimulate the essence and blood within a cultivator, allowing them to unleash much greater power at the cost of their life essence.

Of course, the side effects were extremely obvious. Once the medicinal power was exhausted, the cultivator would face a backlash; at best, they would suffer heavy injuries, and at worst, their cultivation level might even drop.

Seeing Black Shark fighting so desperately, Li Qing let out a cold sneer. It was already too late. His figure had already arrived right in front of Black Shark.

(End of Chapter)